
Pocketwatch recovered from the RMS Titanic. Source: REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
The largest collection of artifacts salvaged from the ill-fated RMS Titanic is set for auction at in New York City on the 100th anniversary of the disastrous shipwreck. Over 5,000 items including fine china, personal items and actual pieces of the ship form the collection, which is valued at approximately $189 million. The auction will be held on April 1, 2012 but the results won’t be announced until April 15–the day the Titanic sank on its maiden voyage from Southhampton, England to New York City.
The largest and most opulent steamship in the world at the time, the Titanic was owned by the White Star Line company and infamously dubbed “unsinkable.” 1517 of the 2,223 people aboard died when the luxury liner struck the now infamous iceberg and sank. The artifacts will be sold as a complete collection and due to a 2010 court ruling, the new owner must make the collection available for public exhibition and for research purposes.